Thunderlight: The Dragonian Series, #2

By Adrienne Woods

Vibrant, scale swathed wings… Abilities that can be harnessed by a chosen few… Dragons…

All this may seem like old news, but for seventeen year-old Elena Watkins the world of Paegeia is not finished revealing all its secrets. During a summer break intended for relaxation, she discovers that her harrowing adventure to retrieve the King of Lion sword wasn't the destiny foretold by the cryptic Viden, a dragon with the ability to see a person's true fate. The words inked onto the page of the mysterious Book of Shadows remains black and Elena must return to Dragonia Academy to discover their true meaning.

Upon her return to the magnificent castle she has to face a challenge of a different kind, keeping her boyfriend Lucian McKenzie, the Prince of Tith and love of her life, away from the dangerous new student, Paul Sutton. As a Wyvern, Paul has made it his mission to claim Elena as his rider but he is proving to be more perilous than at first glance.

Everyone knew that Wyverns were bad news, and just as evil as the darkness that lurked inside Blake Leaf, the Rubicon forced to fight against his inner nature every day. But Elena can see a small light lurking in the darkness, a destiny still unfulfilled; to prove that Wyverns can be claimed.

Will Lucian's dark secret about Wyverns and Elena's need to prove their true nature cause their love to be torn apart? And which of Elena's friends will be sacrificed this time if she is wrong?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Fire Quill Publishing
• Release date: Nov 20, 2016
• ISBN: 9780994653611

Adrienne Woods

Adrienne Woods resides with her family on the East side of Joburg, Gauteng. If she isn't writing, she is reading and love to spend time with her two beautiful little girls. You can find out more about Adrienne Woods at www.authoradriennewoods.com   

Book preview

One

GORAN

CASTLE IN ETAN

ANGER, BETRAYAL, AND hate turned my stomach to acid. It consumed my mind and I watched as bottles, papers and books flew off the desk and crashed to the floor.

A maid rushed to my side. She didn’t say anything, but her eyes reflected fear in their watery depths. The dustpan in her hand trembled as she started to sweep up the jagged shards of glass. Rising, she began to straighten the books that had fallen to the floor in a heap. Every few seconds her eyes darted nervously in my direction, as if a mere breath would make me lash out at her with my outstretched hand.

I touched her face gently until my hand reached her soft, shapely neck, squeezing slowly as my anger began to rise once again. My grip tightened as I lifted her from her position at my feet until her face was level with mine. Listening carefully, I heard her heart fluttering like a bird trapped inside a cage.

How did I become this way? I spoke, giving voice to my reality.

She stared at me with round, brown unblinking eyes sunk deep into the surface of her face; her cheek bones were sharply defined.

Looking at her sullen expression made me feel worse. I lifted my other hand and struck the woman hard across her cheek.

A cry left her mouth and I threw her from me as if she weighed nothing. She skidded across the floor to land in a heap against a wall of cold, unforgiving stone. If I was a dragon I would blast fire, reduce this wretched place to a pile of insignificant ashes.

Two other maids, hearing the startled cry, rushed into the room. Their eyes were wide as they took in the state of the room and the immobile heap near the far wall.

Sorry, m’lord, the older one said, her voice trembling. She’s new, we will train her better.

They picked up the maid who had come to and was sobbing. She clutched the side of her face, covering the huge, red hand print where I’d struck her.

I nodded. The old maid knew her place well, although I still didn’t care for her name, she knew where she stood.

I threw myself down onto the chair and closed my eyes. A silent roar growled inside of me, lighting a fire of rage deep in my core.

The girl had made it.

The Rubicon saved her life, so a part of him was still fighting me. I could still see her eyes searching mine. They bored into my soul, seeking answers. How is this possible! The Wall won’t allow any human to go to the other side.

Albert’s laughter echoed inside the castle, a startling reminder that good would always win. He would pay dearly for this. I would find a way, and I promised myself she wouldn’t live much longer.

I pushed myself up from the chair and rubbed my face, hard. The anger escaped my lips, making a sickening sound. Rage that emanated from deep within me overpowered the haunting laughter and echoed throughout the entire castle.

Master. Cain’s voice interrupted my thoughts.

Speak, my loyal servant, I said. What is the news?

Everything is in place. We won’t fail you, he spoke in my head.

I closed my eyes, took a deep breath and let it out hard. We’ll see.

---

TITH

ELENA

SUMMER WAS ALMOST over, but everyone’s spirits were high as Sammy searched for something in her room. I had recently arrived at the Leaf home after spending the first weeks of my vacation with Becky. Sammy was in rare form this evening as she bounced off the walls with barely contained excitement.

Elena, cheer up! We’re going to the Warbel games and I know it sucks that Lucian won’t be there, but I promise, you’re going to enjoy it, okay? Sammy spoke fast, as I moved out of the way of one of her shirts sailing toward me.

Sammy, it’s not like I’m trying to be like this, I just really miss him... My lips puffed out a breath. Tell me again why the Warbel games are so mind blowing. I tried to change the subject away from Lucian. He was still away on a hunting trip with his father, and the girls had decided the best way to brighten my mood was a sport that basically sounded like Greek warfare. I still had no clue what the Warbel games were about even after Sammy tried to explain it to me while searching for the jersey of her favorite team. It sounded exciting as words like soldiers, attackers and scorers made it into her lengthy description.

Because it’s the Warbel games, she said.

The only thing I retained was that Warbel was some sort of dragon and human sport that they loved to play on this side of the Wall. She also said that Dragonia had a similar game at the beginning of each school year, but it wasn’t as dangerous as the real one. I became even more confused when she started talking about raiders and incantations and couldn’t figure out how all of it came together.

Guess I’ll have to see it before I can really understand what it’s all about.

The one thing you need to understand is that the game we are going to tonight is really dangerous, she added as she continued to tear apart her closet, and that the humans who participate are extremely well developed magic wielders, for their own safety as much as for winning the game.

I still had no clue what the Warbel games were about. Okay, awesome.

Sir Robert had gotten five tickets for all of us from a friend who couldn’t make tonight’s game.

Lucille, Becky’s mom, had also gotten tickets for her, Becky and George, so we were all going to the game together.

I had spent the first three weeks of my vacation with Becky and Lucille, who was not a typical mother, but was the most selfless person I’d ever met. She also seemed way too young to be Becky’s mom and looked more like Becky’s older sister. She hated it when I called her Mam or Mrs. Johnson, and insisted that I called her by her first name. She was a lot like Becky in a sense — they shared the same type of fashion choices and clever comments — but she also had a love of art, which Becky didn’t. That part connected with me one hundred percent.

Becky and her mother lived in the totally opposite neighborhood to the Leafs, and they had more money than I could even dream of. I guessed it was why Becky was a bit of a brat. Staying with them made me realize what type of a person she could be sometimes. Having all that money made Becky bossy and turned her into someone with whom I never thought I would be friends. But the thought of not having her around to give me her two-cent comments, especially when I didn’t ask for them, was unthinkable. She was also one of the bravest and fiercest girls I knew, and the best friend, apart from Sammy, a girl could ask for.

As we continued to look for the jerseys and get ready, Isabel came up to give us a five-minute warning. Blake had vanished around five, simply saying he would meet us there. Sir Robert had given him his ticket before he disappeared, so he would be able to find us.

Ever since that night at camp when he got wasted and put me under some sort of hypnotizing spell which almost made us kiss, which was seriously ridiculous as he despised me, he’d been acting like his old self: arrogant and a total dick. Something about Blake always wanting me when he was wasted made me wonder about the things he was hiding, and if maybe those things only came out when he was drunk.

I shook my head and the thoughts of Blake washed away as I grabbed my bag and followed Sammy to Sir Robert’s old sedan.

The drive wasn’t that long and I gasped when Sir Robert pulled into the parking area in front of a giant mountain. There were at least a million cars already parked in neat rows and the noise coming from inside the mountain told me that it must be where the Warbel games took place.

Crowds wearing different colored jerseys, caps and scarves huddled around. Some even carried flags, and I saw a yellow one with a huge hornet on top of what looked like a raider.

Raiders were flying devices that made me think of an enhanced skateboard.

Everywhere in Paegeia’s parks, and ports, people flew on them. You needed a special license for one and I tried so hard to suppress my laughter when Becky told me that her next try would be her fiftieth or so attempt to get hers.

Becky wasn’t one of the safest drivers out there. I still wondered every time I was her passenger if the inspector who had given her a driving license had been smoking weed or something.

We climbed out of the car and excitement rose inside my chest as I followed the Leafs into the opening at the bottom of the mountain. It was dark, as the only light came from tiny globes mounted in the wall, so it took a while for my eyes to adjust to the soft glow of the lights as we piled into another tunnel.

People pushed and shoved us as we tried to make our way to our seats. The pace we moved was reasonable for such a big crowd, but it was still too dark and too cramped for my liking. We finally stopped when the people in front of us didn’t move. I hated every second we had to wait for whatever held up the crowd to pass. I was jumpy and took huge breaths as the heaviness on my chest came back, mixed with a shot of adrenaline.

Are you okay? Sammy asked softly and I realized I was squeezing her hand tightly in my own.

Sorry, just crowded. What’s happening down front?

It’s normal, we are close to the check-in point.

I flinched as a huge horn blew right behind me. It echoed off the wall and sounded like an archangel announcing doomsday.

The crowd barely moved now, and I felt like punching the guy when he blew on it a second and third time. The other people thought it was funny, and I wished that I felt the same spirit inside of me, but this dark passageway was starting to seriously creep me out.

After a few minutes, I could finally see the outline of what looked like five cubicles and people moving into rows. We took the one closest to us and waited until it was time to present our tickets. Ours had blue dots on them and I still had no idea what I was going to find tonight.

It took a few seconds for my eyes to adjust as we entered a lighter room. Six black elevators, three to a side opposite one another, made my heart jump a bit faster.

In Paegeia, an elevator wasn’t just an elevator. It was how the people of Paegeia traveled around the world, if you were a dragon, and inside Paegeia, if you were human. I hadn’t experienced one myself and had only seen them once inside their funny-looking tubes when we went to fetch George at the Wall when he’d come back from the other side.

Are these the same elevators they have at the Wall? I spoke softly.

Sammy laughed at the small shake in my voice. No, Elena. They are normal elevators.

People surged forward again as they maxed the elevator’s weight limit, and Sir Robert pushed the blue button. He wore a black T-shirt with a pair of jeans and a baseball cap. Wrapped around his neck was a green-and-black striped scarf.

Sir Robert Leaf was Sammy and Blake’s father and, The Greatest King Who Ever Lived, King Albert’s dragon. He looked nothing like the figure inside the museum of Etan, and he was nothing like I’d imagined. He was kind, always friendly and no matter how much Blake pissed him off, he would give me a soft look and a friendly smile. It was hard to imagine that he was Chromatic, a Night-Villain, and one of the vilest dragons that roamed this world. The people of Paegeia didn’t address him as Sir Robert anymore. Some of them even thought he’d had something to do with betraying the king, but I knew better. He missed his Rider every single day; he missed his Dragonian.

His wife, Isabel, stood next to him with her arm wrapped in his. She wore a parka with a green-and-black striped beanie. A huge smile, along with pure excitement, was written all over her face. She was the spitting image of her twin sister: The first time I saw her, I’d thought for a second that Constance, the doctor at the infirmary, was Sammy and Blake’s mom.

Sammy had doubled over with laughter when she saw my expression. Isabel was a Swallow Annex, just like Constance, and I was sure if you put them together you wouldn’t be able to tell them apart just by looking at them. She was also just as kind as her twin, and had made me feel at home the moment I stepped inside their house.

The elevator screamed as we ascended into the peak, and a million things that could go wrong filled my head. The door finally opened and we all had to get out so that a couple at the back could exit.

When the door opened for about the fifth time, we spilled out.

We took a sharp left and entered a stadium that was located at the very top of the mountain.

My knees turned to rubber. I really hated my fear of heights.

The crevasse at the top of the mountain was wide open and a multitude of stars shone in the sky. Bright lights blinded me for a second, and when my vision returned I saw myriad seats stacked in rows, mounted against the wall. It resembled a normal football stadium, except there were no poles and as far as I could tell no floor either.

VIP boxes were located at the very top of the mountain and I couldn’t recall ever seeing so many people in my entire life.

Two huge bells elevated in the air were stationed in opposite directions and flags of all colors were flapping around the crowd. Blue, red, black, yellow, light blue and green holographic flags hung in the air and huge screens were located on all sides just below the VIP boxes. Somehow Sir Robert spotted Becky and George in the crowd and pointed in their direction. Lucille saw us and waved excitedly.

Blake was still nowhere to be found and I guessed he’d probably sneaked inside one of the boxes with someone. After all, he was a famous dragon.

When we finally reached them, Lucille gave me a warm hug while Isabel and Sir Robert greeted her with two kisses on each side of her face.

The vibe coming from the people in the crowd was overpowering. Some had dyed their hair the same color as the team they were rooting for, while some simply wore scarves and jerseys. It was so consuming I didn’t know where to look.

My eyes caught the instrument that had made the horrible racket from half an hour ago. Every other person in the crowd had one, and I finally saw the humor in them as I watched George blowing on one too. It made a hollow, low sound and I had to cover my ears as George’s breath lasted for at least two minutes.

The people around us applauded him when he eventually ran out of breath, and Sir Robert slapped him on the back. Becky and George each had a green beetle painted on their left cheeks.

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls... oh and dragons, someone spoke loudly over the sound system. The crowd went crazy. Welcome to the two-hundred-and-fifth annual opening of the Warbel games!

Fireworks went off and glittered in enormous star-bursts in the sky. I gaped at the display as it lingered before the sparks descended. People yelled and cheered with their flags flapping in the air as horns blew.

The speaker continued about sponsors and the people who’d made all of this possible. This was followed by a small show I’d only seen on TV. It was a display of Chinese dragon puppets twirling in the air. Fire erupted from the puppets and the crowd cheered again. After the show, there were more announcements.

Now the moment everyone has been waiting for. I’m honored to present this year’s teams. The Sapphires!

A team of humans on their raiders and dragons flew out of a huge door that opened on the opposite side of the arena.

The players all wore white and light blue uniforms, with flying goggles over their eyes and vests for protection. The man who led them did a somersault in the air and landed on his board once again; everyone just soaked up his performance and screamed for more.

That is Luke. It’s a shame he plays for the Sapphire team, he is so frawesome, Sammy yelled and I laughed at her made-up word, putting freaking and awesome together. It was something she and Becky were really good at. A close-up of Luke appeared on the big screen. He grinned with his goggles now resting on top of his head, and waved at the crowd. I knew his face from the poster on Sammy’s bedroom wall.

Which team are we supporting?

Duh! She pointed to Becky and George’s green shirts. The name ‘Green Masquerades’ stretched across the front and back with the outline of a dragon’s head.

Go Masquerades, I said weakly.

Sammy laughed at my pathetic attempt at a cheer.

The voice over the speaker introduced all the players on the team. Four humans were gliding on their raiders, while four dragons, a Copper-Horn, a Fire-Tail, a Moon-Bolt and a Night-Villain, flew out from an opening in the cave wall and hovered in the air below their human team members.

The next team, the Yellow Hornets, flew in from above our heads and the crowds painted and dressed in yellow blew on their horns. Around me yellow flags flapped in the wind created by the beating of the dragons’ wings.

They came to a halt opposite the Sapphires and the voice introduced all of the players. One dragon blew a fire bolt into the crowd as a cheer rose, but an invisible wall blocked it before it could do any damage. The crowd rooted as the Sun-Blast dug in and dived into the air.

Another team, this time wearing blue and black uniforms was introduced as The Blue Raiders. As each team received their introduction I noticed that the dragons all had abilities and almost every team had a fire-breather and a Swallow Annex.

Two more teams, the Red Crusaders and Black Leapers, were introduced to roaring cheers from the crowd. Last was the Green Masquerades, and I was excited that it was finally our turn to cheer.

Four humans dived out on their boards to a roar of applause. The one in front made a loop on the raider and was followed by a few more.

That’s Blaze, she’s so amazing on that raider of hers! Sammy yelled into my ear.

That’s a girl? I yelled back.

Sammy’s dimples dented deep into her cheeks. It’s not just men participating. She’s been the captain of her team for the past four years. She’s tried every year to get Blake on the team but the Council doesn’t want to budge, he can’t even participate in his human form.

Why not?

Multiple abilities, who knows.

That is so unfair. He’s not allowed to do anything. No fun. No wonder he messed things up.

The announcer’s booming voice introduced the four humans. Blaze Trulip was the captain, just as Sammy had said. She wasn’t afraid of anything, and she played the role of soldier, which meant that she could be everywhere, score, defend, attack and help keep the other team from scoring. The guy next to her was Wilson DJ, who was introduced as the keeper. Richard, the diver, was one of the scorers with Baba Johnson. He bowed on his board which made the crowd cheer the loudest. The four dragons were Kyle, the Snow Dragon; Peter, the Sun-Blast; Dez, the Copper-Horn; and Fick, the Green Vapor. They were the four attackers.

Once the team introductions had been made, the five referees were introduced. They wore black pants with boots and white-and-black striped shirts. They each had flying goggles and a baseball cap.

Sir Robert and George growled at the same time when Peter McIntosh was introduced as one of the referees this year. He’s a cheat, George shouted.

Clearly half the crowd didn’t like this Peter McIntosh dude, but he handled it well. The crowd booed when he bowed as deeply as he could.

The Yellow Hornets are going to win this year for sure, Sammy said. He used to be their coach.

I shook my head. I’d never been into sports, for exactly that reason. Dad hated it when they cheated at football. This would have been a game we could have enjoyed together. I could just imagine how he would’ve explained this one to me. I smiled as I pictured him babbling excitedly about scorers and attackers, the words coming from his mouth fast while he crouched on the couch, like he did whenever he got excited when his favorite football team was about to score.

He must have missed this. Knowing my dad, this was definitely his sport. He used to yell at what patsies the quarterbacks and football players were whenever he used to watch the Sunday games. I still didn’t know what a patsy was, but the way he used it, it had to be something lame.

I cheered along with Sammy and everyone else when the teams left the arena. The Yellow Hornets and Sapphires stayed behind for tonight’s game.

The players each took their places on the field, if you could call it that. The two keepers stood in front of the two bells and we were in the perfect spot as each bell faced us on opposite sides. The rest of the players stood in a row in front of the keepers. They looked so small, but the big screens captured each of their faces in turn.

One of the referees, not the McIntosh dude, was chosen as the main ref for this game. The other four stood on the sidelines. When the whistle blew, the four dragons dived down with the scorer and the two soldiers. Their main target was a huge ax that dangled in the air a few yards below them.

Fire, frost, and acid balls flew through the air in rapid succession. All of them bounced off the invisible shield that protected the crowd and everyone cheered again as one of the humans on the yellow team got to the ax first. His goal was to hit the huge bell on the opposite side. He ducked and dived on his board, and missed a few fire bolts, as a frost ball smashed into snowflakes right behind him.

The crowd hailed and it turned into what I knew as a wave. It was so fun to participate as it came our way.

When the man with the ax realized he was trapped, he threw it through the air to one of his teammates.

Seeing an opportunity, one scorer from the Sapphire team went for it, and grabbed the ax before the other yellow scorer caught it. The Sapphire crowd jumped up in their seats and yelled with fists pumping in the air.

By the sound of Sammy’s rooting, I knew we were cheering for the Sapphires tonight.

The scorer, whom I assumed was Luke, twirled around on his board, ducking and diving through some bolts and with a loud ‘gong’, he hit the bell with the ax. An animation of a dragon jumping up and down with a huge number three flickering behind him appeared on all the big screens.

Everyone I’d come with tonight whistled and shouted wildly.

Luke’s human team members congratulated him with high fives, slaps and everything you could think of to say well done.

I laughed as one of them bumped him with their head.

After the celebration was over, the players went back to their positions and the whistle blew once again.

The Yellow Hornets scored next and then the Sapphires were on fire, scoring three times in a row. Each time that animated dragon would come back, announcing the total points of the team who’d just scored. I now understood why Sammy was so crazy about Luke; he was really fast and always had a ready smile.

As the game progressed, the crowd drew in a collective breath as a fire bolt headed for one of the human players. It was too late to block it and the fire bolt struck the player. One of his teammates caught him as his board came smashing against the shield protecting us from the action. His teammate dropped him off at a Swallow Annex standing off to the side, who I assumed was there for medical reasons.

This is why this game is really dangerous. You’ve got to pay attention, Sammy said without taking her eyes off the commotion.

The crowd cheered when the player got up, but he was way too disoriented to continue competing and they had to make do without him.

The game started again when the Yellow Hornets scored another point.

Dragons flew in all kinds of directions, using their abilities on one another, while the scorers tried to gain extra points.

Suddenly, the crowd went completely silent as all the dragons in the arena froze in mid-air. As if on strings, they all turned their heads in unison in our direction and came charging at us with a venomous look in their fiery eyes.

Two

FEAR TORE THROUGH me like a dagger and my body froze. The blood in my veins stopped flowing and I felt as if I’d been plunged into an icy lake. The eyes of the dragons in front of me changed into silvery, misty orbs. Like puppets in some sort of choreographed dance, they assembled in the air and flew in line with our row, breathing their fire, acid, and frost balls all in one breath.

What the hell is going on? George was the first to speak. We all flinched when the balls hit the invisible wall. Each time a ball connected with the shield, there was an explosion of small sparks; but the magic that had sustained the barrier was no match for the force of the dragons’ combined power and the last acid ball got through, landing at Sammy’s feet. With wide eyes, Sir Robert stamped it out quickly with the heel of his boot. Turning my gaze back from the smoldering, melting pile, I looked in horror as they came back for a second attack.

The crowd began to panic, realizing that the wall was gone, and everyone started crashing toward the exits. We couldn’t move as the crowd pressed in around us and Sir Robert yelled something in Latin at George and Becky.

Lucille moved in front of Sammy and me, trying to tell us the plan over the roar of the fearful crowd. Her lips moved fast and she waved her hands around her head in a panic.

In the time it took us to figure out which exit she was pointing to, the balls came flying our way again. In a flash Lucille had her arms stretched in the air and spoke the words of the protection spell softly. An electric popping noise told me that her invisible shield was up and ready, just in time for the first blasts to bounce off harmlessly. The last fire bolt came blazing at Lucille and hit her shield hard and at an angle. Lucille fell to the floor, unconscious.

My heart pounded as I stared at her limp body, immobile on the cold cement. Becky’s voice was filled with pure panic as she called her mother’s name, imploring her to get up.

George pulled Becky back as she made her way to run toward Lucille. Now is not the time. We have to get this shield up.

Isabel crouched beside Lucille, her hands already glowing. Becky took one last, hard look at her mother before turning around and going with George. She took Lucille’s place in line with the others and I could hear their chanting as more balls came our way.

It was times like these I wished I could understand the stupid language and help out.

Blood poured down Becky’s nose as the next ball bounced off her shield, pushing it with great force into her face. Her part of the shield grew weaker just as a Sun-Blast came charging toward us. Sammy and her mom dragged Lucille’s immobile body out of the way while I just stood there, watching. It seemed as if he was right in line with me and nothing would get in his way.

My eyes locked with his and I couldn’t move. My feet felt heavy and the same familiar feeling of Goran locking us in one spot that night only a few months ago emerged in my mind.

The Sun-Blast opened his mouth to breath fire and I could see that Becky’s side of the wall was completely gone.

I pulled my legs hard and sweat, mixed with fear, rolled down the side of my temple as I pleaded with my body to fight whatever force was keeping me rooted in place.

This is it, I’m going to die!

I was watching a stream of fire escape the dragon’s toothy mouth when something hit me hard on the side. I crashed into the chairs next to me and fell to the floor with a thud.

I was pinned down by whatever had knocked me over and I couldn’t move under the weight.

Whatever had saved my life buzzed and trembled above me and I smelled the essence of roasted wood and musk.

Get the wall up. I heard Blake’s voice roaring millimeters from my ear. My eyes flew open and I was face to face with him, our noses almost touching. We were so close I could see the muscles around his jaw clenched in strain. Just stay down.

"What’s happening?

I don’t know, but for some reason they’re aiming at the four of you.

Something moved to my left and I saw that one of his wings was covering the both of us, creating a protective canopy. He had partially transformed and I stared at him with wide eyes.

Are you okay?

I’m fine, just don’t move.

How did you — An image of Goran jumped into my head again.

Did I what?

Goran is alive, he’s here! I started squirming which only brought our bodies closer together.

Elena, calm down. He’s not here.

No, Blake, he’s here! Before, I couldn’t move, just like that night.

Relax. My eyes met his and they started to calm me down. He is not here. If he was, we would be dead. He looked over his shoulder. Dad, get the shield up!

We’re trying, Blake. Just hold on.

Goran can’t be alive. No, I saw how we killed him and that Dragonian that night.

Blake cussed softly and his muscles clenched again. Elena, don’t move. I’m going to try to divert the Sun-Blast’s fire. Just lie still.

Fire?

He growled at me and he had that annoyed expression again. Rising slightly, he started to flap the wing that was over us and his other wing sprouted from his back. Blake now resembled some sort of angel, albeit a really pissed-off one.

Fire singed my skin since Blake’s wing wasn’t in place to protect my body anymore.

Just breathe. I drew in a huge breath.

My skin started to boil, and I clenched my teeth and closed my eyes as a muffled scream escaped my lips. I could feel the skin on the side of my body and shoulder begin to stretch and blister as the heat became too much to bear.

Mom? Blake yelled.

I’m ready, just get that flame away.

I opened my eyes and could see what he meant about diverting the flame, and why his dad was having trouble getting the wall up. We were lying directly in the Sun-Blast’s stream of fire.

Blake’s body pushed the fire back and at the last second, Sir Robert and some of other adults were able to complete the spell to spring the wall back into place.

Blaze and her team members were among the wielders who helped, and the minute we were safe, Isabel crouched low beside me.

Her hands glowed as she gently touched my body. You are going to be okay, Elena.

Relief washed over me as the boiling and burning sensation faded, leaving a cool, comfortable zing that reminded me of my time with Constance.

Isabel helped me to my feet carefully. The fire had ruined my jacket, but at least it wasn’t burned into my skin, thank heavens for that. She quickly pulled me by my arm to a safe spot.

Lucille grabbed and kissed me like she had Becky the day she picked us up from school. I was glad she was fine, though I struggled to shake the images of her lifeless body from my mind.

Thank goodness, you’re alright. When I woke up and saw Blake partially transformed, and that flame... Her eyes were closed then they sprang open as a thought crossed her mind. Why didn’t you move?

I couldn’t. I looked at her and then at Becky. "It was that same feeling, the one Goran

Reviews for Thunderlight

[MandyFourcy · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Très bonne histoire, avec des rebonds intéressants. Il est dommage que la mise en page empêche de lire la fin de chaque paragraphe.

[Tina Willis · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I love this series!!! I can’t put them down! Awesome

[EmmaRJ · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Frequent pauses between words, but an amazing story. Well done!